Volume 1 Chapter 43 Wandering
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
After escaping from the Count Coral’s mansion, Princess Asuka and Puruun’s carriage headed northeast. It was the shortest route to the neighboring territory.
”If we enter the neighboring territory like this, even the Count Coral won’t be able to chase us easily. It would be a violation of his territory, you know. This is the beauty of having small lords!”
The princess seemed to be having fun.
”Ms. Tomori, could you make some tea for us?”
At the princess’s request, Tomori handed over some herbal tea while saying “ocha.”
It seemed like the princess had anticipated this situation, as she had arranged for the carriage driver through private means today. I see, that’s why she forced Tomori to come along.
”Princess, about what we talked about earlier… were you testing the Count Coral with our little antics?”
Puru asked, a hint of curiosity and suspicion in her voice.
”Oh no, Puru. My feelings for you are genuine. It’s just that, well, it’s like my hobbies and practical benefits aligned… That guy, the Count Coral, can’t do anything with this situation. He wouldn’t be able to decide whether to back me or Elder Brother Aaron right now…
So, Puru. Our immediate goal is to escape to Ms. Claudel’s family estate, the Count Rainsheyn territory, but let me be clear here.
My ultimate goal is to take the throne in place of my brothers! If that doesn’t happen, the foundation of this country might shake.
So, Puru, please lend me your strength until the end!”
The princess pleaded, her voice softening as she sought support for her ambitious plan.
”Y-yes! Of course!”
Even though Puruun said that, she couldn’t hide her surprise. When did this princess start thinking like that? Now that she think about it, Lady Claudel and the princess’s supporters probably had that as their goal all along.
To the anxious Tomori, Puruun said,
”Akari. Yuuta. Let’s go.”
”Yes!”
It seemed Tomori understood the objective.
In the middle of the night, they crossed the border into the neighboring territory. It appeared that the planned route had already been discussed between Lady Claudel and the princess, and preparations for their escape were being made in each territory.
Near dawn, they arrived at a small town station and switched carriages, sending back the servants who had traveled with them from the Coral Barony. So, they continued on, changing carriages to head towards the Rainsheyn territory, but the whole journey was expected to take about 2 months.
However, it seemed that Prince Aaron’s proclamation had already reached various countries and some lords might have taken different stances than before. Their only bodyguard was Puruun, and the responsibility was heavy.
With that tension hanging in the air, they continued their journey, but about a month later, Puruun fell ill.
”That’s a bad fever. You really need to rest and see a doctor or healer… Hey, coachman. Whose territory is this around here?”
The princess asked, and the coachman replied.
”This area is the Baron Sübert’s territory.”
”Baron Sübert? I don’t think I’ve heard much about that…”
”Well, it’s a tiny territory. But the lord is a kind person.”
”I see. With Puru in this state, we can’t afford to take any chances. Let’s try to rely on that lord. If it gets dangerous, we’ll just have to run for it. Coachman, we’d like to stop by the lord’s place.”
”Got it. It’s a small territory, so it’ll take about 2 hours to get to the mansion from here.”
Tomori placed a wet towel on Puruun’s forehead.
”Princess… I’m sorry for putting you at unnecessary risk because of me…”
”It’s okay, Puru. A baron like him will definitely bow down to me!”
They arrived near the baron’s estate, but to be ready to escape quickly, they stopped the carriage a bit far away, and the princess went to the mansion alone. If things looked dangerous, she planned to run back to the carriage.
Puruun was still dizzy from the fever, barely able to stand.
While that was happening, the princess hurried back.
Oh no, does this mean they have to run?
”Puru, Puru. It’s okay. Don’t worry!
The lord here is someone you know well!”
Wait, she doesn’t know any baron… but then it clicked when they reached the mansion.
The lord of the Baron Sübert was that Mr. Tethyrkan!
Puruun had never met him, but he was the person Yuuta had been desperately searching for.
She remember asking for directions together in the Royal Capital.
Once she felt relieved, it seemed like Puruun just passed out right there.
The next time she woke up, Puruun found herself in a warm bed.
Tomori was probably taking care of her, dozing off with a wet towel in hand. It looked like his fever had gone down. They must have done some treatment for her.
After dozing in bed for a while, the princess walked into the room.
”Oh, Puru. Thank goodness! It seems like your fever has gone down!”
”Ah, Princess. I’m really sorry for causing you trouble.”
”It’s fine, it’s fine. By the way… I talked a lot with Mr. Tethyrkan. It seems like he met Mr. Yuuta too.”
”Oh, really…”
”…So, I asked him not to mention the relationship between Mr. Yuuta, Ms. Akari, and Tomori in advance.”
The princess whispered softly.
”That person can use telepathy, you know. I think he’ll understand a lot about Tomori with that. I want to hurry too, but I’d be worried if you pushed yourself and got a fever again. …Mr. Tethyrkan seems to be connected with Lord Mihail, so it’s reassuring… Let’s take it easy here for a bit!”
Two days later, Puruun was fully recovered and was going to have dinner with the princess and Tomori, along with Sir Tethyrkan.
”I never expected to meet the princess here. This must be divine guidance. I may be a young lord from such a small territory, but I’m one of those who worry that if we don’t secure the royal authority here, the territory will be in danger.”
”Lord Sübert. I’m very grateful for your sudden offer to help. I’ll be in your care for a while, so please forgive me.”
”You can just call me Tethyrkan. The family name is too formal. I was originally the third son of nobility and wasn’t supposed to inherit a territory, so I used to work in the Royal Capital. But then my brothers passed away one after another, and that’s how I ended up as the lord here.”
After that, we finished exchanging information about the succession issue, and finally, it was time to talk about Tomori. According to Sir Tethyrkan, who communicated telepathically with Tomori, it seems that Tomori was brought here not long after Yuuta and Akari fell through the gate.
The name of the Elf who seems to be the mastermind is… I think it was Sistemador.
Tomori was brought to this world by Sistemador, locked up in a prison, interrogated about various things in human society, and after the questioning was done, sold to a sl*ve trader. She changed masters a few times and eventually was cast out as useless, wandering the mountains and fields until she was picked up by that Banamu bandits. And even there, she was treated as a sl*ve.
Feeling so sorry for her situation, Puruun hugged Tomori tightly with tears in her eyes.
However, even though she had been told that her mother and Yuuta died when they fell through the gate, she was very happy to know they were alive in this world and wanted to meet them soon.
It also seemed that Tomori felt reassured knowing Yuuta was desperately searching for a way to return to his own world.
”Yuutaｍ＆ｒｄ*ｓ＝￥２! ／４.”
”Sir Tethyrkan, what is Tomori saying now?”
Puruun asked.
Sir Tethyrkan hesitated a bit before saying,
”Yuuta has sworn to share a future with me…”
The princess and Puruun exchanged glances and looked down a little.
Tomori had Sir Tethyrkan convey the princess’s current situation and immediate plans. Although she couldn’t go straight to Akari and Yuuta, he promised that they would definitely reunite, and it seemed she was satisfied with that.
Sir Tethyrkan mentioned that he had been called to the Royal Capital due to Prince Aaron’s prior arrangements, but since he had brushed them off and returned, it was dangerous to go to the Royal Capital for a while. He intended to stay in his territory and prepare, but he clearly expressed his support for the princess.
So, the princess and Puruun, along with Tomori, left the Sübert territory and set off towards the Rainsheyn territory.
* * *
Since that day, Melon has been acting all clingy and familiar. It makes me think, isn’t that how a guy acts towards a girl he’s been with? But then again, it could be the other way around… no, no, we haven’t done anything like that.
”Come on, Melon. Stop rubbing your… you know, against my thigh!”
”Aw, but it feels nice!”
I was blaming Ms. Akari for being in Ilman, but according to Ellulu, it seems like I’m leaving myself open to this kind of thing.
But honestly, when my cute little sister acts like this, it’s hard to be tough.
Just then, someone from the museum told me they got in touch with that person who retired from the military joint research institute. If this goes well, maybe I can head to Ilman too?
──A week later, I got the details about that person and headed to the meeting spot alone. Ah, could that be them?
”Um, are you Ms. Arian?”
I asked a slightly older Elf woman.
”Yes, I’m Arian. And you must be Mr. Yuuta? Your language skills are impressive for a human.”
”Oh, thank you. I heard about you from Mr. Soltau at the Royal Museum… I’m looking for an Elf who worked at the military joint research institute, and I was hoping you might know something.”
”Yes, I’ve heard about that. I believe you have a sketch of them?”
”Yes, here it is…”
I showed Arian the sketch that Ellulu had made from a video on her phone. But seriously, this sketch looks just like the person!
”Ugh. This is definitely the uniform of the joint research lab. And this person, I feel like I’ve seen them somewhere… Sh? Te? Oh, I remember! Sistemador! I used to work in the General Affairs Department, so I had met a lot of people. Well, there weren’t many Elves at the lab anyway. I wonder where this person is now… He was still there when I resigned, and I think he was talking about some kind of spatial movement… Oh, is this a military secret?!”
No doubt about it! This person is the main culprit behind the gate incident!
”Thank you! Just knowing his name is a huge win. But since Ms. Arian has already retired, finding out where he is now is a bit too much to ask…”
”Oh, Mr. Yuuta, wait a second. Maybe I can look into it through some old connections.”
”Huh? Is it really okay to ask for something like that?”
”Hehe. Actually, it’s not. It involves highly classified military secrets. But even if I find out something, it’s not like you, as a human, can do anything about it. This kind of thing is all about give and take…”
”What do you mean by that…”
I had a really bad feeling.
”Hey, you. How about we have a little fun together? I’ve heard human men are amazing.”
Whoa, here we go again… Why are Elf women so wild?
Ugh. But, at this point, whether it’s 5 or 10, it’s all the same!
(Ms. Akari, no matter how far I go, I will definitely come back for you…)
Thinking that in my heart, I disappeared into the alley with Ms. Arian.
With the incredible skills of the older Elf woman, I was taken down about 5 times, but it was worth it because later, Ms. Arian sent me a letter through someone else, saying that Sistemador is still working at the Military Joint Research Lab. And it seems that for the past ten years, they have been continuing their research with the support of the Royal Capital’s Military Commander, General Naskinpos.
She mentioned that she couldn’t write about the research details, but from the circumstantial evidence, it seems almost certain that this person developed that gate with military support and tried to invade my world.
But, as far as I’m concerned, this investigation is over. I can’t possibly storm the Military Joint Research Institute or the Royal Capital Military. We’ll have to rely on the support of Sir Mihail and Rainsheyn.
However, at the end of the letter, there was Arian’s address and it said, “Let’s do it again.” Ugh, I can’t show this letter to Sir Mihail as is…
I explained the situation to Melon and Ellulu, and set out for Ilman to join my family. It’s too dangerous to get any further involved.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply